1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to devices which can be employed to wind or coil upon a drum type reel, a substantial length of wire, or other elongated flexible member.
2. Brief Discussion of the Prior Art
A number of types of devices have previously been proposed for reeling up or for unreeling great lengths of wire, such as barbed wire, or smooth, relatively small diameter wire, such as electric fence wire. Other types of wire also are frequently stored upon large reels or drums, and means must be provided for winding as well as unwinding the wire at different times. Manual winding devices are, of course, time-consuming and strenuous to operate, and from a practical point of view, cannot be utilized to wind up great lengths of wire.
Some devices which have previously been provided contemplate the mounting of a spool upon a shaft or post mounted on a truck, with a motor or manual means then provided for rotating this spool to wind up fencing wire in the field.
For the purpose of avoiding the necessity to provide a reeling motor, or the manual effort necessary to reel up wire on a drum, it has also been proposed to connect a reel to the hub of an automobile wheel and, after jacking up the car, to run the automobile in order to cause the wheel and reel to undergo rotation, and in the course of doing so, to wind up the wire. This structure, of course, has the disadvantage of requiring some time to install or place in proper winding position on the hub of the wheel, entails the dangerous and strenuous procedure of jacking up the vehicle, and has other attendant disadvantages which largely offset the advantage of allowing the reel to be motor driven as the wire is wound up.